This is a recipe I've been trying to make for a while, but it is just more effort than I usually put in. Last night I swore at the cookbook and threw it on the floor after realizing too late that the quinoa had to be cooked in advance. But now that I've made it, I have to say: this stuff is crazy delicious and worth all the work.

On leap of faith I brought this to a potluck for my friend Britt's birthday, without previously testing the recipe. It was a big hit! Lentils, quinoa, cracked wheat, greens and a good salty spice blend make this dish a sure thing. So much so that the party host asked to keep leftovers for herself. What could be better than that?

Molly Watson's Brown Rice BowlFebruary 17, 2015

This meal is packed with protein, whole grains and greens. It can be easily assembled from ingredients cooked the night before or earlier in the day and it tastes great. That's a triple win, in my book.

Molly Watson's Crusty Brown Rice with Greensfebruary 12, 2015

The photos are beautiful and the concept is great, but so far I'm striking out with this cookbook. First the cruncny farro, now a dinner that elicits "Ew! Crusty? Brown? I won't eat it!" To top it all off, I singed the crust.

Lisa Leake's Alfredo with Shrimpfebruary 4, 2015

Shrimp cook fast. Shrimp are high in protein. Shrimp taste good. I usually only need two good reasons to do something, so that's enough for me! This recipe has the added bonus of using spinach, which is a frequent part of our weekly CSA box. And it makes whole wheat pasta tolerable. That's five reasons to make it for dinner. Five!

Mustard Greens with Garlic and Peanutsjune 8, 2014

This is one of those recipes that sounds too simple to be good. But, it is actually incredibly delicious. Any type of mustard greens works: red, green, curly, flat. Or a mix. Simply sauté some sliced garlic in a little peanut oil, them add the mustard greens. Cook for a few minutes until they are as wilted as you like them to be and sprinkle chopped peanuts on top.

Ribolitaseptember 17, 2013

Tamar Adler's book has gotten me excited to roast my vegetables all on one day, make a pot of beans and reheat the two for the rest of the week. But I know there will be more tomatoes coming in the produce box and we have to eat those first. She does have instructions for oven roasting tomatoes, but this soup, Ribolita, sounds better.

Emergency Bean Soupjuly 30, 2013

Our crockpot is going to get a lot of use this week. We're back from vacation, the fridge is empty and the produce box doesn't come until Thursday. Plus, I'm much too busy to deal with anything complicated or time consuming.

Taverna Squashaugust 30, 2012

Late this summer, my family and I pitched a tent at Eatwell Farm, where most of the produce we eat is grown. Farmer Nigel Walker and his partner, Lorraine, had invited CSA members out to the farm for an event called "Do Nothing Weekend". We spent our days swimming and canoeing in the pond, drinking lots of house-made soda, counting feral cats and generally lounging around.

A Fun Thing To Do With Leftover Risottomarch 4, 2012

"Leftover risotto?" you ask, "why would I ever have that?"

For starters, risotto is an easy last minute dinner that is limitlessly flexible and requires little thought. It is the perfect solution to an overabundance of leeks, freezer space that needs to be reclaimed from bags of frozen shrimp, or a drawer full of green things preventing the fridge from closing.

Indian Spinach - may 4, 2011

Sometimes dinner needs to be fast and furious, and a plan made in haste can go badly awry. But occasionally a crazed forage through the pantry yields exciting surprises, like last night. In this case, Nigel Slater's Indian Inspired Spinach and Potatoes were on the menu (from Tender, my second favorite kitchen garden cookbook), but after dumping my son in front of TV and gearing up for dinner, I found no spinach and only a single potato in the house. Luckily, we had some sweet potatoes leftover from a past CSA box, fresh chard, spring onions and green garlic, all of which remade a semi-traditional take on saag aloo into a delightfully Springy Californian version. For a little extra protein that the kids would eat I warmed some frozen chickpeas with a little bit of curry powder and tossed those on top.